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w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 7 3 oe Groia has a long history of making enemies. He appeared on our cover in 2008, and he was as combative then as he is now. That story examined how Canadian securities regulators have a shoddy record of prosecuting corporate fraud. Groia had worked at the Ontario Securities Commission in the eighties, where his reputation for aggressive enforce- ment had ruffled a lot of powerful feathers. But Groia still emitted a confident air in 2008, after a victory over his former employer for his client, John Felderhof. Felderhof was the former head geologist for Bre-X Minerals who had been engulfed in a gruelling eight-year legal battle with the OSC on charges of insider trading and fraud. Groia's combative style has served him well on the defence side as well, but he likely created even more enemies. Who would have guessed that Groia would be back on our cover eight years later after this victory had come back to bite him? Groia's latest battle is against the legal establishment itself — or, more specifi- cally, the Law Society of Upper Canada. The legal regulator says Groia was uncivil when he represented Felderhof. Groia says that he was just being a zealous advo- cate for his client. Now it is headed to the Supreme Court. Like many battles, however, the rhetoric doesn't always explain what is really at stake. In Groia's case, is he only being disciplined to punish him for being rude or do his enemies have other motivations? Many critics of the LSUC's approach contend that civility, while sounding like a laudatory goal, is often used as a way to exclude unwanted members from a group. University of Ottawa professor Adam Dodek argues that notions of civility have long been used to exclude groups such as women and minorities from the profession. While Groia is not visibly from an outsider group, his approach at the OSC was to take on many powerful companies. Large institutions, and the lawyers they hire, have a long memory for those who take them on. Groia clearly strayed out- side the polite Canadian establishment that doesn't rock the boat. Groia made many of his opponents uncomfortable, and he himself admits that he could have used different words. It was likely not always a pleasant experi- ence being on the receiving end of his zealous advocacy. In fact, many of the best defence lawyers stay pleasant and calm and still manage to represent their clients highly effectively. But by going after Groia for being uncivil, is the LSUC's battle simply encour- aging lawyers to work better together, or is it sending another message about who is in and who is out and what happens when you are not part of the group? It is now up to the SCC to grapple with this question and decide how Groia's long-fought battle with many of his enemies will end. E D I T O R ' S D E S K @canlawmag tim.wilbur@tr.com Director/Group Publisher: Karen Lorimer karen.lorimer@tr.com Managing Editor: Tim Wilbur tim.wilbur@tr.com Associate Editor: Mallory Hendry mallory.hendry@tr.com Copy Editor: Patricia Cancilla Art Director: Bill Hunter Production Co-ordinator: Catherine Giles catherine.giles@tr.com Contributors: Michael Ganley, donalee Moulton, Mark Cardwell, Geoff Ellwand, Jean Sorensen, Marg. Bruineman, Mallory Hendry, Jim Middlemiss, Elizabeth Raymer, Alex Robinson Canadian Lawyer is published 11 times a year by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reprinted without written permission. The opinions expressed in articles are not necessarily those of the publisher. Information presented is compiled from sources believed to be accurate, however, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Canadian Lawyer disclaims any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect of the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. Sales and Business Development Sales Manager: Paul Burton E-mail: paul.burton@tr.com Tel: 416-649-9928 Business Development Consultant: Ivan Ivanovitch E-mail: ivan.ivanovitch@tr.com Tel: 416-887-4300 Client Development Manager: Grace So E-mail: grace.so@tr.com Tel: 416-903-4473 Business Development Consultant: Kimberlee Pascoe E-mail: kimberlee.pascoe@tr.com Tel: 416-996-1739 Account Executive: Steffanie Munroe E-mail: steffanie.munroe@tr.com Tel: 416-315-5879 Canadian Lawyer Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. One Corporate Plaza, 2075 Kennedy Rd., Toronto, ON. M1T 3V4 Tel: (416) 298-5141 Fax: (416) 649-7870 E-mail: cl.editor@tr.com Web: canadianlawyermag.com Linkedin: linkedin.com/groups/4917423 Twitter: @canlawmag Facebook: facebook.com/CanLawMag Publications Mail Agreement #40766500 ISSN 0703-2129 © 2017 HST Registration #R121349799 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESS TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy RD., Toronto, ON. M1T 3V4 RETOURNER TOUTE CORRESPONDANCE NE POUVANT ÊTRE LIVRÉE AU CANADA AU SERVICE DES PUBLICATIONS One Corporate Plaza, 2075 Kennedy Rd., Toronto, ON. M1T 3V4 Circulation/Address Changes/ Subscriptions Keith Fulford Tel: (416) 649-9585 Fax: (416) 649-7870 E-mail: keith.fulford@tr.com Subscription rates: Canada1 year print and digital $102 plus HST, 1 year digital only $99. Outside Canada 1 year print & digital $99 USD, 1 year digital only $99. 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